Abstract
This review is focused on hybrid polyhydroxyalkanoate-based (PHA) biomaterials with improved physico-mechanical, chemical, and piezoelectric properties and controlled biodegradation rate for applications in bone, cartilage, nerve and skin tissue engineering. PHAs are polyesters produced by a wide range of bacteria under unbalanced growth conditions. They are biodegradable, biocompatible, and piezoelectric polymers, which make them very attractive biomaterials for various biomedical applications. As naturally derived materials, PHAs have been used for multiple cell and tissue engineering applications; however, their widespread biomedical applications are limited due to their lack of toughness, elasticity, hydrophilicity and bioactivity. The chemical structure of PHAs allows them to combine with other polymers or inorganic materials to form hybrid composites with improved structural and functional properties. Their type (films, fibers, and 3D printed scaffolds) and properties can be tailored with fabrication methods and materials used as fillers. Here, we are aiming to fill in a gap in literature, revealing an up-to-date overview of ongoing research strategies that make use of PHAs as versatile and prospective biomaterials. In this work, a systematic and detailed review of works investigating PHA-based hybrid materials with tailored properties and performance for use in tissue engineering applications is carried out. A literature survey revealed that PHA-based composites have better performance for use in tissue regeneration applications than pure PHA.
Highlights
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) constitute a family of biopolyesters that are synthesized and accumulate within the cellular structure of prokaryotic cells by bacteria, and they act as carbon and energy reserve materials under conditions of limited nutrient, such as nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorous or magnesium
PHB and PHBV are nontoxic because their degradation products are water, carbon dioxide and D-3-hydroxybutyric acid, which are natural constituents of human blood, and PHA-based biomaterials cause less-severe inflammatory reactions compared to other biopolymers, such as polylactic acid (PLA) [28]
The results demonstrated that PHB/CTS scaffolds supported chondrogenic differentiation of rat mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in vitro
Summary
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) constitute a family of biopolyesters that are synthesized and accumulate within the cellular structure of prokaryotic cells by bacteria, and they act as carbon and energy reserve materials under conditions of limited nutrient, such as nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorous or magnesium. PHBHHx is another member of the PHA family with improved mechanical properties compared with both PHB and PHBV. PHB and PHBV are nontoxic because their degradation products are water, carbon dioxide and D-3-hydroxybutyric acid, which are natural constituents of human blood, and PHA-based biomaterials cause less-severe inflammatory reactions compared to other biopolymers, such as PLAs [28]. The application of PHAs is limited due to their weak mechanical and thermal properties, slow degradation rate, lack of bioactivity, and poor hydrophilic properties To overcome these disadvantages and improve PHA properties and make it more suitable for biomedical applications, many hybrid PHA-based composites have been investigated [28,31,32,33,34,35]. Polymers 2021, 13, 1738 mechanical, chemical, and piezoelectric properties, degradation rate, cellular response of hybrid PHA-based composites and their biomedical applications
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